Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates

Title- Dead of Winter

Author- Darcy Coates

Publisher- Poisoned Pen Press

Rating- 4/5

Expected Date of Publication- 11th July, 2023

Summary- Christa and her partner join a tour group headed to the snowy expanse of the Rocky Mountains to spend some quality time with each other. However, when a deadly snowstorm strikes the region, the group is forced to find shelter in a hunting cabin. With the outside temperature dropping with every minute, Christa thinks she is safe inside the cramped cabin until their tour guide goes missing, and the following day his severed head is found hanging from a huge pine tree. As more people from the group are brutally murdered, and more heads are added to the tree, it becomes clear that the killer is one of them. With the storm worsening each day, there is no way out but to stay in the cabin with the butcher. It is also impossible to contact the outside world to request them to come and rescue them. Will Christa be able to identify the murderer before she is picked up?

Review- This book is fabulous, and I have not read such a fascinating psychological thriller in a long time. Here in India, it is summer, and we are getting roasted in this scorching heat. However, while I was reading the description of the snowy landscape and the intensity of the snowstorm, I was feeling cold, thanks to the author. She has weaved the plot in such a way that it will always keep you on the edge of your seat till you read the last page. Though I had predicted who the killer was almost halfway through the book, I was still second-guessing myself all the time due to the author's way of writing the story.
                 In this novel, the characters are the tour group members, including the guide. Christa is the protagonist through whose angle we get to know the whole story. The most tricky part about this story is that after the tour guide is killed and more murders happen, the members suspect each other. This suspicion continues till the end, which acts as a boon to the real killer. Even the reader will participate in doubting most of the group members.
                This book is an absolute page-turner, and I almost flew through it. Readers who love to read thrillers must read this one.
                 Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher, for allowing me to read an ARC of this book.